


Someone You Loved

by ThirteenOakdown



Series: 13's Mechanics AU [1]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: BAMF River Song, F/F, Female Doctor (Doctor Who), GAYYYYYYYY, crossposted on tumblr, from this post on tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-29 11:40:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18222674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThirteenOakdown/pseuds/ThirteenOakdown
Summary: Thirteen and River after 3 years apart. Set in an AU where Thirteen and River had a fling over summer, then River had to leave.Crossposted on my tumblr. Enjoy, and do leave feedback!Song -- Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi





	Someone You Loved

## Someone You Loved — Lewis Capaldi (Word Count — 2100)

Thirteen was working on Sexy when she heard a voice from the door of her shop, saying something that sounded like “That isn’t supposed to fit there, you know.” She wiped her hands on a rag, blowing the hair out of her face, and came eye to eye with someone who looked familiar. “Uhhhh...River?” The stranger flicked a coil of curly golden hair out of her face and replied, smirking, “Hello Sweetie. Haven’t seen you in a long while.” Thirteen could literally feel her heart beating faster in her chest, and she managed to stutter out a meagre greeting, and River just smiled. “Don’t worry, I’m not here to seduce you again, ” she said, winking flirtatiously. “I just need several parts for my bike, that’s all.” 

 

Thirteen managed to stammer out another acknowledgment, leading her towards the back of the shop, not complaining when River took her hand tentatively, both of them dancing around each other as if the previous summer had never happened. As River hovered over several different types of wheels, including one a glaring shade of bright turquoise, Thirteen found herself back in her brain, reliving the previous summer. 

—

River Song had been the object of many people’s admiration and desire, and Thirteen had been one of the many who wanted to call River theirs. So it was a surprise when River showed up on her doorstep, holding up a piece of calculus homework and arching an eyebrow at Thirteen when she answered the door, and Thirteen’s heart hit the floor so hard that she could have sworn the pavement cracked. Later, as Thirteen pored over calculus, and River sat in a chair, looking intently at Thirteen and fiddling with a mechanical pencil, Thirteen had looked up after solving a particularly hard calculus problem, smiling in triumph, and had caught River staring at her. “What is it? Do I have something on my face?” River shook her head, looking away, almost as if she was embarrassed. “No, it’s nothing, it’s silly.” “Go ahead, tell me, I’m very serious. I won’t laugh.” River looked at her skeptically, an exhalation of breath taking the place of a laugh. “It’s nothing, really.” Thirteen tilted her head, smiling at her softly, and turned back to calculus. “Well, if you do decide to tell me, I’m all ears.” There was nothing but the sound of the pencil scratching on paper for a moment in the living room, the sunset filling the room with warm orange light, turning Thirteen’s hair into a blaze of golden and highlighting her razor sharp cheekbones. ‘It’s not possible to be this cute,’ River thought to herself, huffing out a laugh at herself for what she was about to do next. 

“Thing is, I really like you,” she started, smiling at the look on Thirteen’s face. “I love your eyes, I love how your hair falls over your face and I love your cheekbones. I love it when you smile like you know some secret we don’t know, I love how your eyes look older than you are but are still full of mischief, and I love it when your face lights up like you’ve just seen your favourite person in the world. I love everything about you, Thirteen, even the parts you might not like about yourself.” Thirteen looked at River, biting her lip and smiling, pupils blown wide. “Wow, uh, really? I had no idea you noticed those things about me.” She looked away, blushing and rubbing the back of her neck, and looked back, entire face lit up. “I really like you too, and I’m glad we feel the same.” Without giving River a chance to reply, she snared the lapels of her leather jacket and kissed her, and everything running through River’s mind just...stopped. Nothing but the faint raspberry taste of Thirteen’s lip balm and the smoothness of her hair remained, and River’s eyes fluttered shut, one hand resting lightly on Thirteen’s waist and one cupping her cheek gently. When they pulled apart, River was pretty sure her pupils were dilated, Thirteen’s tinted lip balm was slightly smudged, and the two of them couldn’t stop smiling. “That was…amazing.” 

River laughed, nipping back to kiss her again, brushing her lips against hers, light as a butterfly. “Thank goodness you enjoyed that as much as I did, because I definitely wouldn’t mind an encore.” Thirteen chuckled, leaning sideways, her head landing in River’s lap. “You know, it’s not actually possible for you to be this adorable,” said River, gently touching her nose, causing Thirteen’s nose to scrunch up, both of them giggling, then River picked up the piece of calculus homework. “I actually knew this, but I wanted a reason to see you outside of the Citadel.” The students who went to King’s College* called it the Citadel for short as a tradition started many years ago, by a person who called themselves The Master. Thirteen picked it up, fanning it through the air, and said “You should frame it up, as testament to how you got a kiss with me.” River smiled, bending down to kiss Thirteen on the forehead, and swept her off the chair and into her arms, causing Thirteen to squeal, and River set her on her feet. “I should probably go, as I have to feed Octavian**, my cat. I swear, I’m his prisoner.” Thirteen looked downcast, but quickly brightened up when River said “I’ll be back with an overnight bag, if you wouldn’t mind me staying over?” Thirteen shook her head frantically. “No no no no, of course I wouldn’t mind!” River smiled sweetly, turning and swinging one leg onto her glossy silver motorcycle and drove off, careful not to disturb the neighbourhood. 

 

True to her word, she returned with a duffel bag, greeting Thirteen with a kiss on the cheek. “Bedroom’s that way, bathroom’s in the corridor, and you know the living room. Now, if you will excuse me, I’m trashed.” River agreed, slinging her bag over her shoulder and following Thirteen into the bedroom. Later that night, they were facing each other in bed, the lights off and breath fanning across each other’s faces, and River couldn’t stop smiling, and judging by the glint of Thirteen’s teeth, she couldn’t either. Thirteen inched towards River, burrowing her head into her chest, and with a muffled “I love you” and a “goodnight”, she was asleep. She didn’t feel River brush a kiss against the top of her head, nor did she feel River’s head droop downwards to bury her nose in Thirteen’s hair.

—

One year had passed since River’s confession, and it was the dead of winter. Thirteen and River were in bed, pressed together from chest to toe, and of course, Thirteen was hogging the blankets. River woke with a start, her feet beginning to lose feeling, and she saw a mound of blankets, with a golden-haired head just peeking out over the top. She tugged, at first gently, then slightly firmer, until she had an idea, and smiled evilly. Wiggling her cold feet through the many layers (it was a wonder Thirteen didn’t suffocate), she soon reached Thirteen’s little cocoon of warmth, and twined her legs around Thirteen’s calves, taking care to make sure Thirteen could feel the temperature difference. Sure enough, Thirteen awoke, poking her head out blearily, and grumbled “Your feet are freezing, what in the name of all that is holy—” “You hogged the blankets.” Thirteen pulled the end up and shuffled backwards, throwing the blanket over the two of them, and almost instantaneously went back to sleep, small snores and grumbles coming out of her mouth complaining about how cold River’s feet were, and in that moment, River was sure she hadn’t loved anyone more than she did Thirteen. She pulled Thirteen closer and the blanket tighter over the two of them, and closed her eyes, feeling loved.

—

Another half a year had passed, and it was summer. River was glad that Thirteen hadn’t left her yet, voicing this, and Thirteen had looked at her incredulously, her eyebrows forming a line. “River, why on earth would I leave you?” River hopped onto their kitchen counter, sitting down and grabbing an ice cold glass of water, and shrugged, the sleeves of her King’s College tee riding up with this movement. “I don’t know, just popped into my mind.” Thirteen put her bowl of ice cream down, scowling at something. “Was it Missy again? Pay her no heed, she’s just teasing, and of course, seeing as I’m the only friend she has, her sense of humour is a little off.” She couldn’t bear to see River sad and insecure, doubting whether Thirteen loved her, and she pushed her bowl of ice cream back into the freezer, and hopped up on the counter next to River, leaning her head against her shoulder and letting the cold air of the air-conditioner fill her lungs, and she pressed a kiss to River’s shoulder, feeling the originally tense muscles relax slightly. “Oh, River, why would I leave you for someone better when you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me?” River smiled, looking at Thirteen, and touched a finger to Thirteen’s nose. “Thank you for that, sweetheart, I love you too.” Thirteen jumped off the counter, full of manic energy, and rushed over to get another bowl of ice cream along with her original bowl. “First one to the sofa gets to pick what we watch on Netflix!” River laughed joyously, and rushed out of the kitchen in an attempt to beat Thirteen. They ended up watching Ocean’s 8, with River enraptured with the action that was going on onscreen, and Thirteen was watching River, trying to capture this perfect summer forever in her mind.

—

Of course, all good things have to come to an end, otherwise nothing would ever get started. River was graduating, and it was her last summer that she would spend in London, and after this she was going to the UCL to study archaeology. As a parting gift, she had bought Thirteen a motorcycle of her own, and had called it a motorcycle that “Travels And Reaches Destination In Style”, TARDIS for short. Though Thirteen had fell in love at first sight, she had been reluctant to accept it, but River had insisted, saying “It’s something to remember me by, love. It’s a promise that I’ll be back one day.” Thirteen had hugged her one last time, kissing her lightly on the brow, and let her go. River heaved her bag onto her motorcycle, fastening it, and she swung one leg over the faux leather seat, nudging the kickstand, and she turned back to Thirteen. “I’ll see you again, love, just not very soon.” And with that, she snapped her visor down, roaring off, and Thirteen was left with nothing more than a heart split in two and a cloud of exhaust smoke to show for the best time of her life. So of course, she continued her studies, withdrawn with hollow eyes, and went to bed alone. 

—

True to her word, River was back, one year after they had parted, with the same smile and the same sauciness that she exuded. It was almost as if the summer had never happened, and they were back to dancing around each other, like they had before their fling, and it was driving Thirteen absolutely bonkers. River must have been thinking of the same thing, as she straightened up from looking at the wheels and turned to Thirteen, grabbing her shoulders, and snogged her. Thirteen was shocked, tensing up for a second, then as River pulled away, Thirteen pulled her closer, continuing the kiss, until they both had to break for air, gasping and looking into each other’s eyes. Finally, Thirteen regained her breath and looked at River accusingly, saying “You’re late.” River shrugged, pulling her in for another kiss, and said jokingly, “Sorry, honey. traffic was hell.” Thirteen perched herself on the edge of the wooden table, patting the spot next to her, and the two of them sat in silence for a while. “Let me guess; you already had wheels?” River gasped in faux-offence, then laughed, Thirteen smiling along with her. “Yes, yes I did. How’d you know?” Thirteen shook her head, pulling her in for another kiss.

—

Later that night, lying in bed twined around each other, Thirteen inhaled the once-familiar smell of old books and coffee, burying her head deeper into River’s embrace, trying to make up for lost time. River was humming “Someone You Loved”, the reverberations passing into Thirteen, with the occasional kiss dropped onto the top of her head, and River felt happy and content for the first time for a long while. This was where they both belonged, with each other. 

 

River was home. 

 

 

*hahahahahahaha they’re the best university who teach medicine (a doctor, geddit?) and teach calculus too

 

** S5E4. Enough said.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Drop by and say hi!  
> allthingswhovian on Tumblr.  
> Be warned, it's mostly shitposts and DW content.


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